In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Mithchell 300
Spartacus
Member Posts: 14,415
It was the first reel my dad bought me. Caught my first largemouth with it.
loaned it to a friend twenty years ago and havent seen either one since.[:(]
i always felt like that was my best reel.
now, i just got one on ebay for 8 bucks!
are all the glowing memories and tall tales going to be shattered when i actually try to use it?
were the 300's ever really any good?
tom
loaned it to a friend twenty years ago and havent seen either one since.[:(]
i always felt like that was my best reel.
now, i just got one on ebay for 8 bucks!
are all the glowing memories and tall tales going to be shattered when i actually try to use it?
were the 300's ever really any good?
tom
Comments
i was beginning to think that i was wrong and they were no better than those zebco's you get for 14.99, rod and lure included![:)]
we actually caught 8 and 10 pound bluefish with them in the long island sound! rinsed the salt water off with a garden hose. never had any problems.
tom
I spent so much time with the 300 that now i think most other reels ar wronghanded![:)]
i had a heck of a time catching crappie last year with a borrowed wrong handed rig! had to flip the whole thing upside down[:0]
tom
I had one of those! i think its with my "friend" and my 300![:(]
Then about a month later my Father-n-law was coming up, he's a big fisherman. I told him I'd have a pole and reel for him and not to bright any thing up. I ran across a "deal" at the sporting goods store and picked it up ...a Michael 300 reel. I LOVED this reel, so much so I let my father-n-law have the expensive one & I used the 300! All my time up there I used the 300 on ALL salmon types! Got a 35# king on it with 17# test line ...that and my 2 pc. Fenwick "Ugly stick" ...it's sits on my rod rack right now in a place of honor!! I saw a few years they came out with another run of the 300 ...I picked up two of them! ..Just in case! *G* ...Anybody use the 308? Pretty good for light rigs ...IMHO
looks like it's in real good shape (in the pics)
seller didnt know anything about it, says it was from an estate.
turns out the other one i bought has a drag set at about 2 lbs and wont increase. the drag knob tightens just so far, then feels like its stripped.[:(]
quote:.A lot of the people I fished with thought it was "wrong handed
I spent so much time with the 300 that now i think most other reels ar wronghanded![:)]
i had a heck of a time catching crappie last year with a borrowed wrong handed rig! had to flip the whole thing upside down[:0]
tom
You know they made the Mitchell 300 in left or right hand use [;)], I have several 300's(3 doz or more) most of them right handed but a couple are for the leftys. I have two of the original half bail mitchells and one is right and the other is left handed.
could be, i remember a 301 but that's about all i remember about it.
maybe someone else can "educate" us[:D]
tom
The Mitchell 300 had to be taken apart, cleaned and greased quite often. I you did not use expensive grease, they used to get harder to work when it was -30. I always had to carry a few bail springs and line guides because these 2 pieces had to be replaced at least every year. I always carried some copper shims too...in order to keep the reel as tight as possible. I could take one apart, clean and lub it, replace a couple of parts and could be back in action in 20 minutes at the most. However, the clutch was not very smooth no matter what I did. I often fished with 4 lb mono with my Mitchell 300. They cost about 15 dollars in the late 60's and early 70's. Today, the equivalent would be about 50 dollars...probably more. Today, any of the 50 dollar reels will blow away any of the Mitchell 300s.
Today's reels are much smoother, quieter, tighter and last much longer without any cleaning, lubrication and repairs. I've got a Shimano Symetre 2000 that has had a lot of heavy use these past 10 years and it has never been taken apart yet works as well as the day I bought it. If I put the handle in the horizontal position and it will swing down to the vertical position by itself. Yet, nothing is loose or worn on the reel. It has a rear drag and I often use 2 lb mono on it. The drag is much smoother than the one on the old Mitchell 300.
well, hell, now you ruined it for me![;)]
tom
Thanks! I feel better now![:D]
tom